The Stalking Slytherin
by simplyteesh
Summary: "Twice a day, every damn day he was there." - Katie Bell is a little unnerved by her odd admirer. MF/KB.


**Hey guys,**

**Adore this pairing, not sure why. I think it has the same appeal as Hermione and Draco has, forbidden love. Please be kind, this has not been beta-ed, just written solely for my pleasure and I hope you enjoy it too. Please be a good fanfic-er and review!**

**ENJOY  
**

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**The Stalking Slytherin**

_By simplyteesh_**  
**

He was outside my class again. Leaning against the stone wall with that same unreadable expression on his face as he watched me exit the classroom, hitch my bag onto my shoulder and stroll off down the corridor. And then, only when I had left the area, would he lumber off to his next class with that same expression on his dark featured face.

Twice a day, every damn day he was there.

At first I hadn't noticed him, to be honest I didn't notice many Slytherins other than the usual "I hope they don't curse me" kind of way. But after awhile, I started to realise just how often I had seen his sulky, dark eyed, wide-jawed face each day.

I hadn't told anyone about this oddity, despite being slightly weirded out by his intense gaze I didn't think he intended me any harm. If the twins or Oliver knew, they would hunt him down and probably lynch him in his sleep. The only people that had any sort of clue about it was Angelina and Alicia and only because they had seen him staring in the Great Hall during dinner.

And what was I supposed to say anyways, Marcus Flint the Slytherin Quidditch captain was stalking me?

No. No one would believe me, why on earth would someone like him have any sort of interest in little Katie Bell, Gryffindor Chaser and an ickle fifth year.

I knew I should have been suspicious, or even scared, after all his reputation was frightening enough let alone the haunty persona he had adopted. After I first started noticing his increased attendance to my vicinity, I decided to find out a little bit more about him, you know a bit of a background check.

Sounds a little bit like the police, doesn't it? But the way the gossip system in Hogwarts works, it might as well be the governments central intelligence unit. If you know the right people to talk to, you can find out just about anything about anyone and lets just say I had some connections.

Alright alright, so my connections were my roommates that were obsessed with documenting everything about every hot guy in school... but in my defence they are fairly accurate in their stalking.

I had holed myself up in the back corner of the library with the manila folder the girls had given me that would tell me everything I needed to know. I was hunched over the desk with more intensity than I had ever paid my homework.

It turns out that Mr Marcus Flint was 17, and contrary to popular belief he had not been kept down a year.

He had played Seeker for Slytherin for three years before transferring to Chaser and becoming Quidditch Captain for his final year at Hogwarts.

He was considered the unofficial "head" of Slytherin, the "big boss" if you will. Apparently, he was the one that sorted out any quarrels and made any executive decisions. The first years cowered in his presence.

He was friends with his four dorm roommates, but could still be considered a bit of a "lone ranger".

The girls had also constructed an elaborate scoring system to work out his attractiveness in relation to his hair, face and body. I skimmed over this part, blushing slightly at the highlighted statement, "Tall, dark handsome stranger."

I already knew how attractive he was, I didn't need a pie chart to elaborate on that for me. He wasn't conventionally nice to look at, his nose had been broken too many times, his face was all shadows with harsh angles and his body was intimidatingly large. He still managed to make me blush heavily each time I caught his dark eyes pinning me down.

So yes, when I came out of my History of Magic class this morning, swiping the drool off my face and the sleep out of my eyes, I wasn't all too surprised to see him casually leaning against the far wall looking directly at me.

Usually I would avert my eyes under the intensity, blush and scuttle as quickly as I could away down the hall. Today however, I had a burst of confidence that had surged through me. And as my class mates flowed down the corridor, I stood still for a moment and returned his gaze.

It was only two or three seconds, but it felt like an age. I snapped my gaze away when the rare rush of confidence flooded away from me, but not in time to miss the triumphant smirk that laced his broad mouth.

Staring at my shoes as I hitched my bag onto my shoulder, I looked up to catch his eyes again, only to see him strolling off down the busy corridor towards the dungeons.

_What in the name of Merlin's beard just happened?_ I thought to myself, as I absentmindedly picked my way through the throng of students.

I spent the majority of Defence Against the Dark Arts thinking about that cheeky smirk he had displayed and had in fact accidentally caught poor Millicents hair on fire.

The next couple of days I didn't see Marcus much, it seems my acknowledging his constant presence had shifted a change in our odd exchange. And at night, while I lay in my four-poster bed with maroon drapes pulled tightly closed, I thought endlessly about what this whole situation meant.

On the third day of Marcus-less-ness, I trudged up the girls staircase after a particularly long Quidditch practice in a foul mood. I flung the door open and the blonde gossip queens I lived with scattered like startled chickens.

"Ooo, Katie's in a huff" The queen bee Julie started.

Don't get me wrong, I usually get along great with my roommates, even if I was more tomboyish than they were. Tonight however, I just was not in the mood for the mindless tittering they made.

"Someone's got her knickers in a twist,"

"Must be that boy she asked for the file of, who was it again?"

I puffed out my cheeks in annoyance, they were not going to go there! Not when I was caked in mud, exhausted from practice and not being able to sleep because of him!

Julie however, saved me from having to duke it out with her blonde minions when she cut through their chittering, "Oh speaking of boys Katie, looks like you have an admirer."

Tilting my head in curiosity, I looked over to the window next to the head of my bed where an average looking school owl was perched. While it was normal for me to receive post from my many relatives, it was what was attached to the owls' leg that had my head reeling. A single red rose with a slip of parchment slid off the owl as I untied the green ribbon it was tied with and opened the window to let it out.

Green ribbon, with green ink on the parchment, either they really like green or... it was a Slytherin.

I transfigured a hair tie into a vase and placed the rose into it with a small smile on my face before unfolding the parchment.

_Dear Katie,_

_I'm not one for poems or pretty words, but you make me wish I was._

_Marcus_

So simple and so... well, it was so Marcus. Not that I knew Marcus at all, but I couldn't explain it any other way. It wasn't soppy or romantic, nor was it a death threat. No, it was sort of an acknowledgement that I made him want to do something that he would never have considered. Yes, very Marcus - very aloof. Nonetheless, I blushed a deep red and re-read the note a dozen more times.

The next morning when I strolled into the Great Hall, my long blonde hair left loose today as I had used my last hair tie to transfigure the rose vase, I immediately felt the burn of someone's eyes.

Smiling softly to myself, I knew who it was and felt the gentle flip-flop of my stomach. Sitting at the Gryffindor table's far side so that I faced the Slytherin table, I reached for the pan cakes, still feeling his eyes on me.

_Okay Katie, he's obviously looking for some kind of acknowledgment that you got his owl last night, so come on, gets some wits about you and put the poor boy out of his misery. _I pep-talked myself while munching slowly on my breakfast.

Swallowing my food and my nerves I raised my eyes to scan the Slytherin table for his hulking figure, it didn't take me long to locate him. He was sitting in the middle of the table surrounded by his lackeys and his dark eyes trained directly on me.

I didn't mean to but my lips parted in a small gasp and dip my eyes at the intensity of his stare, sure I was getting used to the way he watched me from afar, but this time he seemed to be able to see exactly what I was thinking.

Lifting my eyes back up to look at him, he was smirking casually at my previous reaction, one corner of his mouth tilted upwards in an unspoken taunt.

I bit my lip unconsciously, I felt like I had lost some sort of game by allowing him to see him phase me. He quirked an eyebrow in my direction, and I didn't need words to understand that he was silently asking whether I had received his "care package". I glanced at his lackeys quickly to see if any were paying attention to the exchange before I looked back at the dark featured man and gave the smallest of nods, giving him a very subtle smile.

I didn't wait to see his reaction, my nerves had run out and were now on edge. I quickly finished what was on my plate and high-tailed it out of the Great Hall, not once looking at the Slytherin table.

For the three days that followed I received three more gifts at night – some Honeyduke chocolate, a Quidditch book and a small bracelet with an intricate Slytherin pendant attached. I made sure to keep the bracelet tucked inside my robe pocket to protect it from the prying eyes of my roommates, also because I wasn't sure whether I liked that he disregarded the fact that I was in fact a Gryffindor. That fact was what, incidentally, lead me to my current predicament.

I had once again holed myself up in the back of the library at my favourite desk, this time I had grabbed some random book off the shelf to keep madam pince from kicking me out. However, I was just using it a head rest while my thoughts wandered.

He was practically the Slytherin overlord and I was a meek blonde Gryffindor.

He was dark in every sense of the word, while I was light.

He was the Slytherin Chaser and I was the Gryffindor Chaser.

He was seventh year and I was fifth year.

He was pureblood and I was halfblood.

_This_, whatever this was, was irrational and stupid. Whatever he wanted, whatever he thought he was playing for it just didn't add up. Someone like him does not associate with someone like me. Ever. Unless it's to duke it out in a classroom, Quidditch pitch or battlefield.

Sighing aloud, I turned my lifted my head and switched sides I was leaning on only I let out a small squeak and sit upright in my chair in shock.

Somehow Marcus had managed to get into the chair next to me without me noticing and was now looking at me with mild amusement.

Coming out of my shock, I realized this was the closest we have ever been to each other even though I felt like I'd been in some sort of relationship with him for the past few weeks. In fact we had never spoken to each other before.

Composing myself, trying my best not to look too stunned or intimidated by his presence, I cleared my throat and tried to speak, "Er, hi." I started lamely.

"Hello Katie," his deep baratone voice sounded lowly.

I was fairly certain this wasn't the first time he had said my name, in fact I recall a few years ago him sneering my name in a Quidditch game when I had stolen the Quaffle from him. This time however, this time his voice had sent little vibrations through my chest and had caused my heart to beat double time.

Smoothing the book I had been using as a head rest, I looked at the open page pretending to be reading, pretending that his presence so close to me wasn't freaking me out in the least.

I heard his breathy chuckle beside me, barely audible but still prudent in the tranquil atmosphere of the library.

"So, you like..." he squinted his eyes as he focused on the chapter title at the top of my page "leeches".

My jaw dropped a little as I finally read what was on my page, it was an indepth analysis of the properties of leeches. Great.

Clearing my throat and thinking quickly I replied, "Ugh, no it's homework. No interest in leeches here." I finished weakly, snapping the book shut in an embarrassed fashion.

He simply quirked the corner of his mouth in a mocking manner that told me he knew exactly what I had been doing in the library.

Suddenly feeling very awkward in his presence I began to collect my things. I decided that leaving would be an excellent idea before I made a bigger fool of myself, I hitched my bag over my shoulder and shuffled down the long corridor of books to return the book of leeches and out of sight of Flint.

After struggling slightly to get the book into the shelf above my head I spun on my heels and was once again faced with the hulking figure of Marcus Flint.

"eek," I let in shock before I could stop myself.

"Where are you going?" He asked simply, and in a way that made me believe he had a right to know.

He stared down at me with his dark intense orbs, his thick arms crossed tightly across his broad chest while he leant casually against the book shelves.

The wave of Gryffindor courage that had been missing in action for the last few encounters was suddenly back and I rose to my full height, latching my blue eyes onto his dark ones defiantly.

"Why are you following me?" I said with a quirk of my chin, daring him to challenge me.

Unfolding his arms and placing them by his sides as if preparing for a duel, he raised an eyebrow at me, "Who said I've been following you, little Gryffindor?"

"I've seen you more in the last few weeks than I have in years, you're outside my classrooms, you sit near where my friends sit, you stare at me during meals and you just came and sat next to me. And don't tell me you didn't send all of those little trinkets cause I know you did!" I blurted.

Marcus did something that I had never expected to see, a true smile. His wide mouth slowly curled up into a toothy wholesome smile.

"Took you long enough." He simply replied.

"What?"

"I assumed you would have confronted me about it days ago," he said with a flourish of his big hands "The truth is Katie, I like you. I like you a lot, and this was the only way I could think of to get your attention without frightening you away."

"You thought stalking me wouldn't scare me?" I vollied back cheekily.

"Well you're standing here right now, so I guess I'm doing alright so far." He said while taking a step forward towards me.

"Oh, well yeah I guess you are doing alright," I said softly, returning her eyes to her scuffed shoes.

"Did you like your gifts?"

Smiling to myself at the gruff way he spoke, straight to the point, "Yes, thank you for them, they were very nice... but"

Marcus's smile faltered at my last word, "but what?" he inquired.

"But... the bracelet has a Slytherin emblem on it, being a Gryffindor I can't wear that." I told him forthrightly.

"I know." He said simply, moving closer to me again. My back was pressed up against the book shelf and Marcus's imposing body was almost touching mine, heat and electricity radiating between our bodies.

"But, I was kinda hoping," he continued, putting a meaty finger underneath my small chin and lifting my face to look up at his, "that you would wear it for me on our first date." He concluded hopefully, his eyes searching mine.

I swallowed quickly, and quickly processed what he had just said... he wanted to date me. While my brain started throwing together a rough pros and cons list, my heart swiftly made the answer for me as it beat wildly in my chest.

"yes" I said softly, almost a whisper.

His hand under my chin slid smoothly up my face to rest on my cheek as his thumb skimmed across my pink blushed cheekbone.

"yes?" he asked back in an equally soft tone, disbelief evident.

I slowly nodded my head and leant into his warm calloused palm, "Yes, Marcus."

With that finally confirmation, his other hand pressed the small of my back towards himself as he leant down and kissed me soundly. After a few moments of shock, I let my eyelids slid close and pushed myself closer to his enormous figure while deepening the kiss.

My whole body tingled and my lips felt on fire as he massaged mine with his. The protesting in my head quietened and eventually disappeared. Pulling back and returning from my toes, I my breathing came in loud huffs matching his. Seeing him grinning down at me, I returned a smile of sheer happiness reassuring him that I was pleased with the outcome.

"So, does this mean you won't wait for me outside of my classrooms anymore?" I asked innocently, looking up through my eyelashes.

"Katie, I'll follow you anywhere." He said simply and honestly back before pulling me into another breath taking kiss.


End file.
